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Ochowicz: There is no deadline to find new title sponsor

BMC Racing’s Jim Ochowicz told Cyclingnews on Tuesday that his search for a title sponsor for 2019 is ongoing and he has not set a deadline for when a replacement for BMC needs to be found.

Richie Porte, the team’s Grand Tour contender, told Cyclingnews in February that May would be ‘crunch time’ time for the sponsor search, and he reiterated the point late last month at the Tour de Romandie. Asked about the search before stage 3 at the Tour of California, Ochowicz said the process takes time.

“It’s not crunch time,” Ochowicz said. “Maybe for some people it is, but it’s not for me. I don’t consider it crunch time. We don’t have a deadline here for this. It’s still the first week in May, more or less. It’s a process, and it takes time. We’re in the midst of that process, so when something happens or not happens and we think it’s time to talk about deadlines and things we will, but that’s not today.”

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BMC has no sponsorship agreements in place for 2019, and their entire rider roster and staff are without contracts for next season. The future of the team rests on a new sponsor being found or one of the main existing sponsors like Tag Heuer or Sophos stepping up and providing the needed financial support.

Andy Rihs, the owner of BMC Racing Team and head of bicycle manufacturer BMC, died April 18 at the age of 75 from leukemia, but the company’s continued support of the team was in doubt even before Rhis’ death.

On Tuesday, Ochowicz said the riders on the team have been told the same thing he told Cyclingnews: the search is ongoing and there is no deadline.